News Releases

Hitachi Hosts “Hitachi Social Innovation Forum 2016 TOKYO”

The Largest Scale Hitachi Group Event in the World

Tokyo, September 15, 2016 --- Hitachi, Ltd. (TSE: 6501) today announced that it will host “Hitachi Social Innovation Forum 2016 TOKYO” on October 27 and 28 at the Tokyo International Forum, a convention center in Tokyo metropolitan area. The goal of this Forum, the largest scale Hitachi Group event in the world, is to further accelerate Collaborative Creation with customers in the evolving Social Innovation Business. This event, being held this year for the 18th time, is expected to welcome a total of more than 30,000 visitors.

In the midst of major changes in industry and society as a whole, Hitachi is accelerating Collaborative Creation with customers as an Innovation Partner in the era of IoT (the Internet of Things). This event is positioned as the flagship among Hitachi events held in various regions throughout the world, including North America, Europe, and Asia. Through diverse lectures, business sessions, seminars, and exhibits, focusing on the theme of “Leading the IoT Era through Collaborative Creation,” it will allow visitors to come in contact with the latest results of the constantly evolving Social Innovation Business, with a particular emphasis on “Lumada,” an IoT platform that fosters Collaborative Creation. Together with customers and partners, Hitachi will look ahead to the future of business and society.

In a Keynote Speech entitled “Social Innovation Accelerated by Digital Technology and Collaborative Creation,” Hitachi, Ltd. President & CEO Toshiaki Higashihara will talk about how Hitachi can contribute to the creation of new value by resolving the issues being faced by society and improving the quality of people's lives through the Social Innovation Business, leveraging digital technologies.

In a Special Speech entitled “Antifragility and How Systems Innovate,” Nassim Nicholas Taleb, Distinguished Professor at the New York University School of Engineering, who gained recognition as the author of “The Black Swan,” will discuss the concept of “Antifragility,” which promotes innovations, growth, and improvements. Jitsuro Terashima, Chairman of The Japan Research Institute, will talk about structural transformations throughout the world and the path being taken by Japan; Lynda Gratton, Professor of Management Practice at London Business School, will talk about workstyles of the future in keeping with changes in society; and Hiroshi Ishiguro, Distinguished Professor of the Department of Systems Innovation at the Osaka University, will host a lecture about the potential of future robot society, offering hints about business innovations and new possibilities.

In the Business Sessions, leaders, experts, and managers who are active in a wide range of fields throughout the world, along with Hitachi executives and researchers, will lead discussions on a wide range of themes, including: "Social Innovation with IoT and Its Ecosystem”; “What does AI Bring to Mankind and Society - Anthropology x Business Management x AI = Happiness - ”; and “Values created in the up-coming Urban Development.” These sessions will offer a glimpse of the rich future that will be made possible through Social Innovations.

At the exhibit venue, Hitachi will introduce a broad range of examples of continually evolving Social Innovations, with a particular focus on the IoT platform “Lumada,” which fosters Collaborative Creation. Hints for accelerating Social Innovations will be divided into a total of five categories: “IoT PLATFORM” “ENERGY” “INDUSTRY” “URBAN DEVELOPMENT” and “LIFE & ECONOMY.” These various hints will be introduced through exhibits presenting more than 20 themes designed to attract visitors' interest, including hands-on demonstrations and three-dimensional displays that will encourage active dialog. In addition, Hitachi will demonstrate the appeal of its Social Innovation Business through more than 50 easy-to-understand seminars introducing solutions for resolving the customers' management issues, along with case studies and examples of those solutions, which include the IoT platform “Lumada,” as well as Big Data, AI (artificial intelligence), and analytics.

There will also be exhibits and demonstrations featuring the humanoid robot “EMIEW3.” Through the demonstrations, Hitachi will use the EMIEW3's multi-language dialogue and autonomous running functions to provide customers with information on shops and facilities, and to guide them to their destinations.

About Hitachi, Ltd.

Hitachi, Ltd. (TSE: 6501), headquartered in Tokyo, Japan, delivers innovations that answer society's challenges. The company's consolidated revenues for fiscal 2015 (ended March 31, 2016) totaled 10,034.3 billion yen ($88.8 billion). The Hitachi Group is a global leader in the Social Innovation Business, and it has approximately 335,000 employees worldwide. Through collaborative creation, Hitachi is providing solutions to customers in a broad range of sectors, including Power / Energy, Industry / Distribution / Water, Urban Development, and Finance / Government & Public / Healthcare. For more information on Hitachi, please visit the company's website at http://www.hitachi.com.